3d ago

Cyclists don’t break traffic laws any more than drivers, says new study

cycling.today Cyclists don’t break traffic laws any more than drivers, says new study | Cycling Today

A new research found that motorists and dangerous street design — not cyclist behavior — are the primary factors that put cyclists at risk. According to the study done by University of South Florida, cyclists were in compliance with traffic laws 88 percent of the time during the day and 87 percent o...

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Cyclists don’t break traffic laws any more than drivers, says new stuy

cycling.today /cyclists-dont-break-traffic-laws-any-more-than-drivers-says-new-study/

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I think it depends on definitions. I treat stops like yields as do many cyclists I know and many places have codified it into law but many have not.
- This is counterbalanced in the tally by most drivers speeding all the time.
- In my area of London, I'd say 80-90% of cyclists think red lights don't apply to them. I've even been sworn at by another cyclist for stopping at a traffic light.
  The illegal ebike users are the worst. My ex saw one hit a woman with two kids, because he just zoomed past a red when it was green man at the crossing.
  Cyclists are the reason I've gone back to public transport. I actually felt safer on my cycle commute on the high road with cars, than I did on dedicated cycle lanes 😞
  
  I still prefer walking over biking over transit with cars being only if no other option but yeah I have had the cyclist who is annoyed at me for following the law but to be fair I have also gotten that with cars. I was hit from behind by a guy who accelerated as I breaked as the light turned yellow. Then when he came out he said. Oh well I did not expect you to stop short like that. WTF!
- Sure, but most car drivers also fail to come to a complete stop as well.
  
  True and that is why I do the yield sign thing. Im pretty much not slowing down but not accelerating. Just coasting through while I keep an eye on if I need to stop. Bikes moves so slowly relative to cars that most cars "stop" is not much slower than my coast.
  
  At lights? I constantly see cyclists go through reds because no car is coming.
  
  At stop signs, or right turns at lights, most vehicles roll through slowly instead of coming to a complete stop, basically the exact same action a bike takes. At least where I live it's perfectly legal for bikes to run stop signs, so long as it wouldn't be anyone else's right of way. But it's not legal for cars to do it, yet they mostly do.
  Edit: passing through a red on a bicycle or motorcycle is also legal in most places with proximity sensors so long as no one else has the right of way. Many lights have proximity sensors that fail to detect bikes, so they have to let it happen or you could be stuck at a light until a car comes.
  
  I call bull shit that motorcycles can go through red lights.
  
  Do you think motorcycles are required to just sit at a light all day long? Some lights these days are only triggered by large metal objects, motorcycles are often not detected. The light will never change if a car or truck doesn't come.
  https://legalclarity.org/when-can-motorcycles-legally-run-red-lights/
  This article only lists some states, but I know it's legal in Minnesota since 2002, so it's definitely not an exhaustive list.
  
  Surely you can see that this is literally the worst possible thread to come and bitch about cyclists NOT FUCKING HURTING ANYONE.
  
  Fuck off.
- Idaho stop is great—all jurisdictions ought to have it—but until yours does, doing it still counts as a violation. 😕

69 comments